I compose music for ads in India myself, and a lot of the times we get ‘references’ that we are expected to blatantly imitate. I’m willing to bet that Youth of the Nation was the reference for this track. I’ve read about this happening in the US too (e.g. Ghostbusters).

Abhijit, That’s it! I think “Youth of the Nation” really sums it up. Good call. And yes, it is pretty common. Sometimes the actual artist is used but when they can’t seem to get them on board and have already sold the client on that sound they write their own.

Laura Branigans’s “Self Control” is an interesting case. First of all it was actually a cover of an Italo Disco song (just like her other signature song “Gloria”) by Raf – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgJml5mnFhY.

It was again ripped by Samantha Fox in her song “I Surrender (To the Spirit of the Night)”, she admitted to this in the liner notes of her Greatest Hits CD and said she told the producers she’d like a song like “Self Control”! – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kR3Bonm7f0k